This invention generally relates to design software, such as finite element analysis (F.E.A.) software, which engineers use to design things such as self-piercing rivets, and more specifically relates to design software which receives inputs relating to design requirements, performs an analysis of a proposed design, and effectively indicates whether the proposed design meets the design requirements.
Engineers often use design software, such as finite element analysis (F.E.A.) software, to analyze proposed designs, such as self-piercing rivets. Such software typically provides that the engineer inputs some information about the proposed design and directs the software to perform an analysis. The software analyzes the proposed design and generates a stress plot. Once the software has generated the stress plot, the engineer must study the stress plot to determine whether the proposed design is acceptable.
The engineer must determine from the stress plot whether the design meets design requirements as well as determine whether the design is over-designed. With regard to possibly being over-designed, the engineer must determine from the stress plot whether a less robust or cheaper rivet design would still be acceptable and meet the design requirements. If the design appears, from the stress plot, to be unacceptable in light of the design requirements or to be over-designed, the engineer must determine from the stress plot what to change about the design to achieve more acceptable results. This process is typically repeated several times in order to arrive at an acceptable design.
Hence, current design software provides that the design process is a relatively tedious, repetitive trial and error procedure. Additionally, the software provides that the engineer must be skilled at reading a stress plot in order to efficiently use the software.